Linux distribution
Linux distribution
BackTrack was aLinux distribution that focused on security, based on theKnoppix Linux distribution aimed atdigital forensics andpenetration testing use.[ 4] Debian distribution and released it under the nameKali Linux .[ 5]
The BackTrack distribution originated from the merger of two formerly competing distributions which focused onpenetration testing :
WHAX : aSlax -based Linux distribution developed byMati Aharoni , a security consultant. Earlier versions of WHAX were calledWhoppix and were based onKnoppix .[ 6] Auditor Security Collection : aLive CD based onKnoppix developed byMax Moser which included over 300 tools organized in a user-friendly hierarchy.[ 7] [ 8] On January 9, 2010, BackTrack 4 improved hardware support, and added officialFluxBox support.[ 4] Slackware toUbuntu .[ 4] [ 9]
BackTrack provided users with easy access to a comprehensive and large collection of security-related tools ranging from port scanners to Security Audit.[ 10] Live CD andLive USB functionality allowed users to boot BackTrack directly from portable media without requiring installation,[ 11]
BackTrack included many well known security tools including:[ 12]
BackTrack arranged tools into 12 categories:[ 12] [ 13]
Date Release May 26, 2006 First stable release of BackTrack based onSlackware [ 9] [ 14] [ 15] October 13, 2006 BackTrack 2 beta #1 released[ 16] [ 17] November 19, 2006 BackTrack 2 beta #2 released[ 18] March 6, 2007 BackTrack 2 final released[ 9] [ 19] [ 20] December 14, 2007 BackTrack 3 beta released[ 21] [ 19] June 19, 2008 BackTrack 3 final released (Linux kernel 2.6.21.5)[ 9] [ 19] February 11, 2009 BackTrack 4 beta released[ 22] January 9, 2010 BackTrack 4 final release (Linux kernel 2.6.30.9 and base OS changed toUbuntu )[ 9] [ 23] [ 24] May 8, 2010 BackTrack 4 R1 release[ 25] November 22, 2010 BackTrack 4 R2 release[ 26] May 10, 2011 BackTrack 5 release (Linux kernel 2.6.38)[ 9] [ 27] August 18, 2011 BackTrack 5 R1 release (Linux kernel 2.6.39.5)[ 28] March 1, 2012 BackTrack 5 R2 release (Linux kernel 3.2.6)[ 29] August 13, 2012 BackTrack 5 R3 release[ 30]
Whenever a new version of BackTrack was released, older versions would lose their support and service from the BackTrack development team. There are currently no supported versions of BackTrack.[ 31]
^ "Developers" . Archived fromthe original on 2010-03-22. Retrieved2010-03-19 .^ "HowTo:Install KDE 4.1" . Offensive-security.com. Archived fromthe original on 2009-08-06. Retrieved2009-12-12 .^ "BackTrack 4 tutorial" . Archived fromthe original on 2011-10-26.^a b c "BackTrack Linux – Penetration Testing Distribution" .Backtrack Linux . Archived fromthe original on 23 January 2025. Retrieved19 February 2025 .^ "Kali Linux Has Been Released!" .Offensive Security . RetrievedMarch 18, 2013 .^ "BackTrack" .remote-exploit.org . RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 .^ Moser, Max (June 22, 2005)."New release of the Auditor Security Collection available" .seclists.org . RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 . ^ Marti, Don (August 2005)."Editors' choice awards 2005" .Linux Journal 2005 (136). Belltown Media: 4.ISSN 1075-3583 . ^a b c d e f "Kali Linux History" .Kali Linux Offensive Security . March 13, 2024. RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 .^ Lalitha, Priya; Challissery Samu, Lifna; Shankar Jagli, Dhanamma; Joy, Anooja (5 April 2014).Rational Unified Treatment for Web Application Vulnerability Assessment . International Conference on Circuits, Systems, Communication and Information Technology Applications. Mumbai, India:Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers . p. 338.doi :10.1109/CSCITA.2014.6839283 .ISBN 978-1-4799-2494-3 ^ Gupta, Ajay (October 1, 2010)."BackTrack 4: A One-Stop Shop for Security Analysis and Learning" .opensourceforu.com . RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 . ^a b Murphy, Brandon F. (July 30, 2013).Network Penetration Testing and Research (PDF) (Report).NASA . pp. 2– 3. RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 . ^ Hess, Ken (September 20, 2011)."BackTrack Linux: The Ultimate Hacker's Arsenal" .Admin Magazine . pp. 1– 3. RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 . ^ "BackTrack Downloads (seriously old)" .remote-exploit.org . Archived fromthe original on 2008-06-26. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack Security Final Release" . 15 May 2006. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "Downloads" .Offensive Security the original on October 27, 2006. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack v2.0 Public Beta Has Been Released!" .secmaniac . 14 October 2006. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 – viaBlogspot .^ "BackTrack Downloads" .remote-exploit.org . Archived fromthe original on February 2, 2007. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^a b c "BackTrack Developers Log" .remote-exploit.org . June 19, 2008. Archived fromthe original on May 29, 2009. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 2.0 Final Due End of February" .secmaniac . 13 February 2007. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 – viaBlogspot .^ "Latest News" .remote-exploit.org . Archived fromthe original on 2008-05-01. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack Downloads" .remote-exploit.org . Archived fromthe original on 2009-05-23. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 4 Final Released" .backtrack-linux.org . January 9, 2010. Archived fromthe original on January 14, 2010. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 4 Final Release" .Offensive Security . RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 4 R1 – Public Release" .backtrack-linux.org . August 4, 2010. Archived fromthe original on November 30, 2010. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 4 R2 Download!" .backtrack-linux.org . November 19, 2010. Archived fromthe original on January 12, 2011. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 5 Release" .backtrack-linux.org . May 10, 2011. Archived fromthe original on February 26, 2012. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 5 R1 released" .backtrack-linux.org . August 18, 2011. Archived fromthe original on February 23, 2012. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 5 R2 Released" .backtrack-linux.org . March 1, 2012. Archived fromthe original on March 3, 2012. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ "BackTrack 5 R3 Released!" .backtrack-linux.org . August 13, 2012. Archived fromthe original on March 14, 2013. RetrievedApril 9, 2019 .^ Ahmed, Waqas (February 1, 2013)."BackTrack to be Reborn as Kali Linux!" .HackRead . RetrievedFebruary 19, 2025 .
